1. Field of the Invention
Aspects of this invention relate generally to devices that can be used for clothing a baby, specifically for swaddling purposes. For the purposes of this application, the inventor uses the terms baby, infant and newborn interchangeably. In addition, the inventor uses the terms device and apparatus interchangeably.
2. Description of Related Art
Swaddling devices are commonly used by hospitals, parents and baby caretakers in an effort to prevent a baby's arms and legs from moving in an uncontrolled manner. The unrestrained movement can cause a baby's limbs, particularly the arms, to hit the baby's face or other areas causing potential injury and interrupting the baby's ability to obtain restful and uninterrupted sleep. Swaddling also intends to mimic the tight/compact environment within the mother's womb in which further soothes the baby to allow for better sleeping behavior. Swaddles can be as simple as a blanket that is wrapped around the baby or more complex comprising of individual straps that wrap around the baby and secured commonly by hook and fasteners or other similar coupling mechanisms. Simple swaddles such as a blanket become loosened easily and lose their effectiveness and also risk that portions of the blanket may be loosened in such a way where a portion of the blanket may interfere with a baby's breathing. More complex swaddles that require straps to be pulled tightly around the baby's limbs often cause uneven pressure on the baby's limbs and if the fastening mechanism becomes loosened can cause portions of the straps to be loosened in a way where a portion of the straps may push up against a baby's throat area whereby causing the potential risk of choking and suffocation. Instead of incorporating the use of straps, some swaddles are in the form of a sack that can be zipped up to enclose the baby's limbs. Although convenient, often times the sack type swaddles do not provide sufficient swaddle support for the baby's limbs thereby providing poor immobilization of the baby's limbs, in particular the baby's arms.
Moreover, all of the aforementioned swaddling devices require the baby to be placed within the device in which the baby's legs are confined within the swaddling device without options to allow the baby's legs to be free and unrestrained.